Perfect Cosmopolitan Cocktail Recipe

Not overly sweet or too tart, our cosmopolitan cocktail recipe is perfect to shake up for one or even prepare in advance for a crowd.Jump to the Cosmopolitan Cocktail Recipe or watch our quick recipe video showing you how we make it.

While there are many variations, ours comes from what we (and most of our friends) keep stocked in our pantry. Good vodka, triple sec (we like to use Cointreau) and fresh lime. A twist of sweet fragrant orange peel and you’re set.

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Making our Cosmopolitan Cocktail Recipe

When choosing the vodka, go for something mid to high range. We’ll usually stock Stolichnaya or “Stoli,” but use what you know you enjoy. The other thing to remember, here is to use fresh lime juice – not the bottled stuff. We realize it’s a little more work, but the taste is so much better.

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: How to make one of our favorite cocktails — The Old Fashioned. See our recipe and tips for making the best Old Fashioned at home.

Lastly, we love adding a little orange peel to this. Sure, it may look like an unnecessary garnish, but if you do it right, it’s adds a little sweetness and as you go into to take a sip of the cosmopolitan cocktail, you’ll get orange essence, which hides the strength and scent of the vodka.

When you add the orange peel, peel it over the drink. This way, any oils that spray out from the orange, fall into the drink. Rubbing the edges of the glass doesn’t hurt either.

Perfect Cosmopolitan Cocktail Recipe

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Not too sweet or too tart, this cosmopolitan cocktail recipe is perfect to serve one or many. We like to use unflavored or citrus flavored vodka in this. If you can, since there is quite a lot of vodka in the recipe, choose vodka that is medium priced or that’s even top-shelf. We like to use Stolichnaya. We love adding a little orange peel to this. Sure, it may look like an unnecessary garnish, but if you do it right, it’s adds a little sweetness and as you go into to take a sip of the cosmopolitan cocktail, you’ll get orange essence, which hides the strength and scent of the vodka. When you add the orange peel, peel it over the drink. This way, any oils that spray out from the orange, fall into the drink. Rubbing the edges of the glass doesn’t hurt either.

Makes 1 drink

You Will Need

2 ounces (1/4 cup) vodka

1/2 ounce (1 tablespoon) triple sec

3/4 ounce (1 tablespoon + 1 1/2 teaspoons) cranberry juice

1/4 to 1/2 ounce (1 1/2 teaspoons to 3 teaspoons) fresh lime juice

One 2-inch orange peel/twist

Ice

Directions

Fill a cocktail shaker with ice then add vodka, triple sec, cranberry juice and lime juice. (We like the extra bite of extra lime juice, so we use 1/2 an ounce in our cosmopolitan cocktails. However, use what is best for your taste). Shake the cocktail shaker for about 30 seconds until well chilled. Then, strain into a martini glass.

Garnish with orange peel/twist. For an extra burst of flavor, peel the orange twist over the filled cocktail glass. This way, the orange oils spray into the glass.

Adam and Joanne's Tips

To make 4 drinks at one time, add 1 cup vodka, 1/4 cup triple sec, 1/3 cup cranberry juice, and 2 to 4 tablespoons of fresh lime juice to a pitcher. Stir and adjust to taste. Refrigerate. When ready to serve, pour into four martini glasses and garnish with orange peel/twist.

Nutrition facts: The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. We have used the USDA Supertracker recipe calculator to calculate approximate values.

If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #inspiredtaste — We love to see your creations on Instagram and Facebook! Find us: @inspiredtaste

Delicious Cosmopolitan. I used a bit more “real” cranberry juice cocktail than the recipe, and the twist of orange at the end, I squeezed the peel first. It made it special and smelled great. I almost left out the orange peel, but then decided what the heck and was very glad I added it!

I made this Cosmo but found I didn’t like how the lime juice tasted in it, so now I omit that. I didn’t have any triple sec so I used Gran Marnier. My cranberry juice was 100% juice and I did not find it necessary to add sugar or simple syrup. It was delicious – I had three!

This was a little too strong as written. I changed it up as follows, and my wife loves it now. 1.5 ounces Orange Vodka, 1 ounce Triple Sec, 2 ounces Cranberry Juice (100% juice, not cocktail and not pure cranberry juice, which is bitter), 1 tsp. fresh lime juice, or to taste (too much ruins the drink) – I cut a lime in half and use one half for two drinks. That’s it! This is my wife’s favorite drink now!

Thank you for a delightful cosmo recipe. I love them but it is hard to find a place that truly knows how to craft one. So, thanks to you, I can stay home and enjoy one.
Side note…. bc I juice fresh cranberries, that is what I used plus equal part simple syrup then used correct measurement from that for recipe.

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